Corn, or maize, is a cereal grain from the grass family and the seeds are ubiquitous in the American diet. This domestic crop was first domesticated by native people in Southern Mexico about ten thousand years ago. And, we are the fortunate beneficiaries!

Bob’s Red Mill manufactures their Organic Yellow Corn Polenta using time-honored techniques to seal in the freshness and bring you wholesome, quality grain. And, Maseca Instant Corn Masa Flour is perfect for homemade tortillas and pupusas.

If you are looking for noodles, Ancient Harvest produces a tasty, nutritious line of wheat-free pasta made with corn, brown rice, and quinoa. We carry their Rotini, Penne, and Spaghetti. We also carry their heat-and-eat traditional Italian polenta (in a tube) in the refrigerator section.

You can find Juanita's Mexican Syle Hominy in our grocery section. Canned hominy simplifies authentic Mexican dishes like pozole.

Krustez Honey Cornbread and Muffin Mix combines fresh corn, honey, and rich butter in a mouthwatering twist on traditional recipes. Bake up a batch and wait for the applause.

Build your own pizzas with award-winning Vicolo San Francisco Cornmeal Pizza Crusts. They come in a refrigerated pack of two. We carry original, organic, and gluten-free.

Mi Rancho combines ancient, old-world authenticity with innovative, state-of-the-art equipment to produce great-tasting corn tortillas.

Tuscon Tamales Black Bean and Corn are high-quality and consistently delicious handmade tamales. They make everything themselves and you can taste the difference. Primavera Butternut Squash Tamales with roasted green chiles, corn, and Jack cheese. We love the tamales that Bay Area local Primavera has been hand-crafting for more than 28 years. 

Tres Latin Green Chile & Cheese Pupusas with Black Bean and Sweet Corn are delicious corn tortillas stuffed with black beans and sweet corn. They're vegan, gluten-free, and dairy-free.

Bar Harbor New England Style Lobster Corn Chowder is a delicious, restaurant-quality chowder. Chowder is a Maine tradition and staple. Definitely worth having a few cans in the pantry!

Black Jewell brings snack lovers a better-tasting popcorn! The Better Taste comes from our one-of-a-kind, small Heritage Black Corn kernels. These heirloom kernels pop bright white with a richer, crispier popcorn taste. Try some sweet and salty kettle flavor.

Ohana Bros makes popcorn with Aloha! Each batch of Island Style Gourmet Popcorn is made by hand, with love, in the Bay Area. The best gourmet popcorn this side of the Pacific! We have their Kettle Corn and Coconut Caramel Popcorn.

Love Corn Premium Crunchy Corn is deliciously savory, crunchy corn kernels that are packed with flavor. They are crunchy and gluten-free. They are great in lunch boxes, as salad toppers, and anytime you need some savory snacking. Try their vegan cheesy flavor.

Tcho Toasted Cornflake Milk Chocolate Bar starts with super-rich chocolate that tastes like a gooey brownie and adds in hand-ground honeyed cornflakes for a crackly bite of comfort with notes of malt balls and caramel. And, they are gluten-free.

Be certain to come by the store to purchase everything you need for your celebration. Our holiday hours for July 4th are as follows:

We will be closed Monday, July 4th so that our Piedmont Grocery family can spend the holiday celebrating with family, friends, loved ones, (and pets).

And, we will resume normal business hours on Tuesday morning, July 5th at 9 AM.

Have a wonderful holiday!

Casa Chicas chips are addictive…they make the best chips you can get in a bag, plus spicy and delicious guacamole and salsas. Plus, they are local—they have a restaurant in Richmond, and only deliver to the Bay Area. So, delight your palette with amazing and authentic Mexican flavors!

And, if you are looking for something to dip them in, try one of our favorite family recipes.

There ain’t nothin’ better than fresh guacamole with fresh chips. Ours is SO easy to make. Just make sure the avocados are super ripe…but not brown.

There is no actual recipe for this Salsa which means it’s a little different each time. Everything is done by eye and taste testing. Feel free to mess with it as you see fit. Roast the chilies on the grill, dial back on the heat, or add some avocado…it’s your canvas to do with as you please.

Give this recipe a try next time you have some really great blueberries and want a snack, And, if you find this rolls into being your dinner, we won’t tell…

It’s hard to believe that this sweet, crunchy, and smoky salsa has only six calories per serving. Serve it with grilled fish or chicken, and it is great for dipping.

One of the perks of living in the Bay Area is that come the summer months, we get some of the best sweet corn from Brentwood—which is right in our backyard. I wait all year for the arrival of fresh local corn and have a tendency to overdo it in the beginning so I need to pace myself.

There is another truth in the Bay Area. Although the calendar might say June or July, there are days when it feels more like November…in Michigan. Mark Twain nailed it. Summer in the city can mean some chilly and foggy days while at the other end of the bridge the locals are melting in one hundred-degree heat. That being said, there have been plenty of evenings when we have been enjoying a lovely time outdoors when “nature’s air-conditioning” rolls in and you go hypothermic.

What I am trying to say here is that it’s not unreasonable for something like a corn chowder to be the perfect answer for a summer dinner. It combines two very Bay Area things, local corn and chilly nights. Plus it tastes good. Pair it with a lovely green salad and a nice chilled white wine from Napa or Sonoma and you have the quintessential California dinner.

The Alameda County Fair has everything you want from a classic county fair: the midway with Ferris wheels and roller coasters, fairground eats. and sweet treats. Experience the Fair like never before with new events, new rides, and new Fair food experiences. They are bringing back a full line-up of concerts and live horse racing long with many Fair favorites.

Guests will also enjoy all the traditional Fair favorites, such as pig races, carnival rides, sky ride and games, horse racing, and the world’s best Fair food.

Every night, the fair will be holding a new light show put on by state-of-the-art drones. The show will take place at the Stella Artois Grandstand and will feature a dazzling display of optical illusions.

Movies at the Fair are also back and will feature a new, family movie beginning each night at 6 PM on the concert lawn.

The Fair has introduced new menu items, including Hot Cheeto Pizza, Boba, Lobster Nachos, Bubble Waffles, and a BunBao booth. The traditional favorites like giant corn dogs, cotton candy, kettle corn, and ice-cold lemonade will all be back, as well as lighter fare options including fresh fruit, wraps, and salads.

June 17th through July 10th (Closed Mondays & Tuesdays)

Open Wednesday through Sunday from 11 AM to 11 PM

Special hours on July 4th.

Waffles are a Sunday morning staple for my family. I have a fabulous two-sided flip waffle maker that I love which makes it possible to churn out a whole stack of piping hot waffles in a very short amount of time. Sometimes we use a prepared mix and other times we make ‘em from scratch. But, no matter how they come into being, everyone in my family can make a mean waffle.

Deciding what kind of waffles to make, however, can be a source of tension.

For the most part, the kids don’t care what flavor the waffles are as long as they magically appear, but they do have their preferences. My daughter is a fan of pecan waffles. These require toasting some pecans, chopping them up, and throwing them in the batter. When cooked and doctored up just right, they kinda taste like pecan pie. Lately, the boys have been partial to blueberry waffles. I take dried wild blueberries and reconstitute them in hot water for about 10 to 15 minutes, drain them and throw them into the batter. The dried wild berries provide a more intense blueberry flavor than fresh.

For me, I have gone to the savory side as of late. I have been especially fond of my recipe for Cheesy Cornmeal Waffles (with some cheddar cheese and green onion mixed in and sometimes crumbled bacon). For some bizarre reason, I find that they are fantastic with butter and syrup—and even better topped with some fried chicken for dinner.

My husband though is not a fan. He’s a waffle purist…so boring!

Without corn, Tema Flanagan writes, the South would cease to taste like the South. Her treasury of fifty-one recipes demonstrates deliciously just how important the remarkable grain is to southern culture and cuisine. Corn's recipes emphasize seasonality. High summer calls for fresh corn eaten on the cob or shaved into salads, sautés, and soups. When fall and winter come, it is time to make cornmeal biscuits, muffins, cobblers, and hotcakes, along with silky spoonbread and sausage-studded cornbread stuffing. And the heaviest hitters, cornbread and grits, are mainstays all year round.

Flanagan also surveys corn's culinary history—its place in Native American culture, its traditional role on the southerner's table, and the new and exciting ways it is enjoyed in southern kitchens today.

Appreciating how this oversized grass is capable of providing sustenance in an astonishing array of forms, Flanagan organizes the book to reflect corn's versatility. Sections feature corn in its full glory: fresh on and off the cob, dried and ground, made into hominy, popped, mashed, and fermented.

The dishes range from Sweet Corn and Poblano Chowder to Southern Skillet Cornbread, from Fresh Corn Tortillas to Classic Cheese Grits, and from Molasses Caramel Corn with Candied Bacon, Peanuts, and Sesame to New Orleans Bourbon Milk Punch. Some dishes are classic southern, others contemporary, and still others globally-influenced.

—Myrtle Beach Sun News

—FLAVORS

—Winston-Salem Journal

If you are searching for a special bottle of bourbon (perhaps for Father's Day?) we recommend two favorites from Rabbit Hole, Cavehill Kentucky Straight Bourbon Whiskey and Heigold Kentucky Straight Bourbon Whiskey. They are both approachable, easy to sip, and either would make a lovely gift.

Rabbit Hole was founded in 2012 by Kaveh Zamanian, a clinical psychologist and psychoanalyst who emigrated from Iran as a child. While living in Chicago, Zamanian met his wife, Heather, who introduced him to bourbon. Zamanian followed bourbon down a rabbit hole which is what led him to whiskey making. As Zamanian notes, She pulled me down a rabbit hole I might never have dared alone, to the countryside of Kentucky, the progressive vibrancy of Louisville, and, inevitably, to Bourbon.

A high rye double malt bourbon with a flavor like no other that won Category Gold at the 2022 Whiskey Awards. By taste alone, you would not guess that this sweet, developed, and easy-sipping whiskey is only aged for 3 years. It is approachable and offers a good amount of flavor.

Mash Bill: 70% corn, 25% rye, 5% malted barley

This four-grain triple malt bourbon is made in small 15-barrel batches. Cavehill with its unique mash bill offers an interesting flavor profile in an accessible and friendly whiskey. This award-winning Bourbon is approachable in its delivery of sweet, but not-too-sweet flavors against a more traditional spice and peppery finish. It brings a clean and bright taste to its delivery. It's accessible in all the right ways while maintaining a level of intrigue that makes it fun to drink.

Mash Bill: 70% Corn, 10% Malted Wheat, 10% Honey Malted Barley, 10% Malted Barley

I like cake. I like dessert in general, but I can definitely assert that I like cake. That being said, I have noticed that my cake tastes have changed in recent years. It used to be that if I went out to eat and a dessert menu was placed in front of me, my eyes would immediately be drawn to whatever was the most decadent, usually chocolate, option.

Not the case anymore. Nowadays if I am out on the town and it is time for dessert, nine times out of ten I will choose the fruity option over the chocolate. Unless it involves coffee or any mention of mocha…that’s a game-changer.

I have also noticed that I prefer less sweet offerings which is probably why a “Death By Chocolate” cake, while potentially fantastic and perfect in the right moment, is skipped over for something with lemon or berries. I find that I only eat what I call the birthday-style cakes for birthdays. (I know…birthday cake for a birthday?? I’m such a rebel.) I don’t make three-layer chocolate devil's food cakes for a random Sunday night dinner. I will, however, make something like this apricot cake, which was amazing with the apricots from my brother-in-law’s tree.

Fruity cakes are great because it’s easier to justify eating them at all times of the day and not just for dessert. A slice of my Lemon Pound Cake Bliss with some coffee or tea in the afternoon can be just what you need to get you through the rest of your day. During the summer months, making a cake with any of the wide variety of fresh berries in the market can easily fill in as breakfast. I mean a muffin is just a smaller version of a cake, am I right?

A number of my favorite eat-all-day cakes include the use of corn or corn meal. I really like the flavor combination as well as the texture that corn can add to a cake. This is a great one for snacking but I also like cakes where the berries are baked in and not just spooned on top.

Brentwood Corn is here — a staff favorite every summer.

Local corn is plentiful and delicious. It’s picked each day, arriving at our market—fresh and without losing sweetness.

The rich, Brentwood agricultural soil and temperate climate of the Delta create perfect growing conditions for high-quality corn on the cob. We now have both yellow and white corn at the store. You can’t get better than this.

Now is the time to indulge—straight off the grill or stove top with plenty of butter and salt. Or try it in one of our favorite recipes.

This decidedly summery Sweet Corn Cocktail is a great way to enjoy the flavor of fresh corn off the cob. It is milky, sweet, and so refreshing. Perfect for a picnic or for sipping outside on a warm day.

I think it’s fair to say that most people will be celebrating the Fourth of July next Monday. How they are celebrating is a totally different question. Some will have backyard BBQs with family and friends. Some will watch parades and wait for the fireworks in the evening. Others will look forward to some downtime in the pool and a day of doing nothing. If they happen to catch a few fireworks in the sky, so much the better.

Not sure which camp I fall into. All of them sound good. But, I can’t deny the appeal of the latter. The last couple of weeks have been a bit crazy. As of this moment, there are no set-in-stone plans. We may go to our local parade if only to absorb a little small town Americana. Or not. There might be a BBQ with friends. There may also just be my husband and me sharing a rack of ribs al fresco. What I do know for certain is that there will be a flag cake. It might be small. It might be big. But, there will be a flag cake.

In my family, it’s not Fourth of July without a flag cake. The type of cake varies from year-to-year. But, the frosting on the top is always cream cheese. And, there are always berries—raspberries and/or blueberries.

If you are road tripping or camping this summer—or even simply need to make some quick meals at home, Patagonia Provisions is a fantastic way to enjoy delicious and nutritious foods that are absolutely top quality.

Everything Patagonia Provisions makes is created to help solve the environmental crisis. To restore our depleted oceans and soils, they use regenerative practices that are often based on pre-industrial ways of growing and harvesting. The bonus is wild, organic foods that are free from pesticides, hormones, antibiotics, and GMOs.

We are currently carrying varieties of mussels, mackerel, anchovies, and salmon as well as soup and chili mixes.

Summer dinners tend to be a lot easier to produce. There is very little in your fridge that can't go on the grill. Chicken, fish, beef, and veggies can all take a turn over the flames. The same is true when it comes to your side dishes.

Since you are going through the trouble of heating up the grill, might as well get the most out of it. If you’re like me, you have garden zucchini coming out of your ears. It’s easy to toss some with a little olive oil and salt and pepper and throw it on the grill next to your steaks. Corn is another great vegetable to put on the grill. You can leave it in the husk and grill it as is for on-the-cob greatness. Or, you can grill it husk-free for the Grilled Corn Salad recipe below.

Just prep the ingredients before you start grilling and while your meat is resting, throw it all together for a tasty smokey side. Bonus points if you grill the peaches too…

This favorite summer cocktail is filled with fresh fruit and a hint of mint for that perfect balance of sweet and tart. The Strawberry Lemonade Cocktail is super-easy to whip up and fantastic to enjoy while sitting outside and enjoying the long days of summer.

Here are our favorite recipes that showcase corn—from fresh, grilled corn on the cob to spoonbread.

If you are looking for alternatives to the classic beef burger the good news is that there are plenty of options from turkey, to salmon, to black bean. A favorite is this shrimp burger. It is great when you want something burger-ish but also a little different.

We love Tillamook dairy products because they pack a load of flavor, have a creamy texture, and are fantastic for everyday use. All of their products are consistently high-quality and delicious! Try their cheeses in our recipes for Mac and Cheese, Grilled Cheese Sandwiches, or these Cheddar Beer Rolls. The cheeses are also great for snacking and the yogurt makes for a quick breakfast or dessert.

Tillamook is a dairy cooperative spanning over 100 Oregon farms.

They remain guided by the same values and beliefs since they started in 1909: quality comes above profit and natural always beats artificial. They don't cut corners and source the highest-quality ingredients to bring you products that are downright delicious. They have high social and environmental standards—investing millions into fighting food insecurity, supporting youth development in agriculture, and pioneering innovative ways to protect farmland and farmers.

The richly-specific taste of Tillamook traces back to a serendipitous partnership with Peter McIntosh, a genius Canadian cheese artist. He brought an arsenal of cheese-crafting knowledge with him when he emigrated to Oregon and joined Tillamook.

Tillamook makes a wonderful line of products and we have much of it in the store including Piedmont's Own Macaroni & Tillamook Cheddar in our Deli Department's prepared food section. Here is what we are currently carrying at the store.

Monday through Saturday from

9 AM to 8 PM & Sunday from

9 AM to 7 PM.

4038 Piedmont Avenue

Oakland, CA 94611

(510) 653-8181

Tahini Noodles with Green Beans and Carrots

The Cocktail Post